Tom Cotton on Families & Children

Domestic violence victim funding pushes ideological agenda

Mark Pryor released a new campaign ad criticizing Cotton for voting against legislation to aid victims of domestic violence. The ad cites that Cotton "voted against protecting women and children from domestic violence."

Domestic violence has gotten a
spate of national attention with the release of video showing former NFL player Ray Rice beating the woman who is now his wife. The issue had been before Congress in 2013 when the federal Violence Against Women Act came up for renewal. Before the
House passed a 5-year extension of the law, it rejected a GOP alternative. Cotton voted against both versions.

His campaign website explains that he believes the federal program spends too much money to "fund liberal organizations to carry out an
ideological agenda without effective results in reducing violence against women." A Cotton spokesman said the ad was a part of Democrats' effort to claim Cotton was waging a "war on women," and to distract from "Obama-Pryor economic policies."